Category: Ask – Seek – Find

Jesus mentions many times in scripture that if you ask for anything in his name that it WILL be given to you.

“Ask and it will be given to you: seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.” -Matthew 7:7-8

“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours.” -Mark 11:24

But what exactly does he mean? Can I just ask for a million dollars, really believe it, and he’ll give it to me?

Well, not exactly…

You see, when you read the Bible as a whole you get the whole picture.

Take what Paul says in Romans 8:5, “Those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on what the flesh desires; but those who live in accordance with the Spirit have their minds set on what the Spirit desires.”

Jesus even said in John 15:7, “If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be given you.”

When you live for Jesus and the Spirit lives in you, you’ll be asking what the Spirit wants for you, not what you want for yourself. You’ll be in line with God’s will for your life.

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.” -Romans 12:2

When you renew your mind with the Spirit, you are aligning your life for what God wants for you. So you will then be asking what he wants for your life!

You’re living for HIM, not yourself.

Have your mind set on what the Spirit desires and God will give you everything you ask!

“Delight yourself in the Lord and he will give you the desires of your heart.” -Psalm 37:4

When I was first exploring Christianity many-many years ago, my dad bought me my first Bible, the King James Version (KJV) translation.

I was excited and started going through it, but you know what happened… I didn’t get very far. Why? Because I couldn’t really understand it as I was reading it. Art, thou, thee, it was just really hard to read.

So, it just sat in the corner doing nothing (the worst thing your Bible can be doing).

Eventually I was given another Bible that had the NIV (New International Version) translation. Guess what… I was able to read it! Sounded just like how I spoke. I liked that, so I stuck with it (Today, I enjoy going through other translations, even the KJV, which makes more sense to me today than it did 10 years ago).

Some of these are Word-for-Word (Ex. KJV) translations, others are Thought-for-Thought (Ex. CEV), and then you have some that are a mix of Word-for-Word and Thought-for-thought (Ex. NIV).

You can see this pretty cool guide here: www.Mardel.com/BibleTranslationGuide

Everyone has their own preferences on which translation is the best. Some believe one translation is more accurate than another. But, I’ve decided to make it easy on you, especially if you’re just exploring or new to Christianity.

Here’s my advice on which translation is the best:

The best Bible translation is the one you’re going to read!

It’s as simple as that. Get the one you’re going to read and, ultimately, apply!

It won’t do you any good if you don’t read it.

So, don’t worry about which translation is the most accurate or that you should read a word-for-word, thought-for-thought, or a mix of the two.

Just get the one you’re going to read and apply!

And, here’s a quick little tip on how to do that:

Go to the bookstore and review Matthew, chapters 5-7 in the different translations. As you’re reading, see which ones flow off the top of your tongue, and which ones make the most sense to you.

Once you find the one you that wasn’t making you stutter, and the one that you understood the most, then that’s the translation you should get.

As you grow with your walk with Christ you can then study up on the translations you’d like to read.

Just remember, none of us started running when we were babies. We first learned to roll, then crawl, then stand up, then hobble around while holding on to something, then walking, then running.

Same goes with all of the areas in your life. Christianity is know different.